US: PAK MUST PROSECUTE LASHKAR OPERATIVES

WASHINGTON: THE US has called for Pakistan, which has a long history of catching and releasing terrorists operating from its soil, to successfully prosecute top Lashkar-e-taiba operatives it arrested ahead of a crucial FATF meeting.

“The victims of Let’s vicious attacks deserve to see these individuals prosecuted now, along with LET leader Hafiz Saeed,” Alice Wells, head of the US state department’s south and central Asia bureau, on Sunday wrote on Twitter. She welcomed the arrests and reminding Pakistan of its obligation to end its catch-and-release approach to dealing with terrorists. Invoking Prime Minister Imran Khan’s own statement, Wells added, “Pakistan for its own future, must prevent militant groups from operating on its soil.”

The Khan government on Thursday announced the arrest of four top operatives of the LET and close aides of the group’s founder Saeed. They were identified as Zafar Iqbal, Yahya Aziz, Muhammad Ashraf and Abdul Salam. Saeed, himself, has been in custody since July.

The new arrests were understood to be linked to the Financial Action Task Force meeting taking place from October 13 to 18 in Paris. It will decide, among other things, whether or not Pakistan has done enough to escape being moved from the “grey list” to the “black list” of egregious offenders.

Saeed was arrested for the ninth time in July, a month after the FATF found Pakistan vastly short of targets set by the watchdog in 2018 to dismantle the financial structure that aided terrorist financing and money laundering.